Monday, May 4, 2009

April Challenge: Could have done better!

So it's now May 4th...and I should tally the score for my April Challenge:

I finished the Land Raider Crusader and the Vanguard. I assembled and undercoated everything else on my list. My drop pods still languish in a half-completed state. So that's a grand total of 15 points out of a possible 57. What the hell happened?

I could give a lot of excuses, but the number one reason, I think, is that I had no plan beyond "get some minis" done. I'd sit in front of my painting set up and stare at my vindicator and my razorback and hem and haw over how to paint it. I'd spend way too long fishing out the paints and setting up. Then I wouldn't paint and instead I'd watch movies on Netflix.

Boo on me! I need to make an effort to write down my paint schemes (I just have colors written down) for each model before I start. I also need to establish a method to painting vehicles...I find them very intimidating to even start...since if you mess up, they're pretty much the biggest mistake you'll place on the board. One thing I'm going to try and do is photocopy the unit images in my codices and color them in before I paint. This way I have a paint by the numbers guide. I think my hobbying could benefit from more pictures to work with.

That all set, I'm going to set a May challenge that involves completing the Fists I've started and also completing some Deathwing Terminators for a massive Apocalypse game in July. To encourage me to actually complete this challenge this time, I'm going to start posting my paint schemes and WIP (probably terrible shots as I won't take the time to photobox 'em). That means an update every 3 days in May, starting in 3 days with a shot of a WIP model or a completed one. Expect a more refined painting list in the sidebar.

Lastly, though it was kind of a failure, the April Challenge really provided me with some good lessons on where I could improve (just paint, you fool!) and all the little things I do that stall my hobby progress (like keeping out a million incomplete models in front me...clear the clutter and focus!). Despite the low numbers, I do think I managed to produce more in April than a normal month...now I just need to keep working at getting better!